Is the Nigerian Air Force getting twelve Su-30 Flanker or is it fake news?

The recent article by Sputniks International reporting that Nigeria just purchased twelve Su-30 Super Flanker has sent military aviation lovers into commotion. The news has been received somewhat with hope while some took it with a pinch of salt.

African Military Blog (A.M.B) is skeptic about the news simply because Nigeria has not shown any interest in the Super Flanker or any other Russian high-performance jet in recent times. The highly reputable IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly international news outlet published the news although clearly citing Sputniks as the source. Jane’s, however, went further to state that:

The report did not identify the Su-30 variant that was being acquired by Nigeria, which was not previously known to be interested in the aircraft. The Nigerian Air Force was known to be lining up the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) JF-17 Thunder, but the finalisation of that deal has yet to be confirmed.

A.M/B believes that this is an error by Sputnik since according to them, Nigeria has received two units of the jet earlier this year. However, the only Russian military aircraft Nigeria has received for the last few years is the Russian-made Mi-35 attack helicopter with further delivery still ongoing.

Nigeria has placed an order for about 2 Squadron of the Chinese/Pakistani PAC JF-17 Thunder fighter jet with three units to be delivered by the year’s end or early 2018. It would be a welcome development if the story eventually pans out as truth because Nigeria desperately needs a capable air defense aircraft since her current F-7 fighter jets are ill-equipped to deal with today’s modern air warfare.

The Su-30 is derived from the highly successful Sukhoi Su-27 flanker. It is a twin-engine super-maneuverable multi-role airplane built in Russian by the Sukhoi Aviation Corporation in 1996. It can perform a wide range of air-to-air and air-to-ground attack roles.